Sunday, April 7, 2013

Raising the Teaching Bar



Children are the future. They are each potential doctors, lawyers, politicians and scientists. Yet for such valuable resources it is surprising the kinds of hands we place their minds into. There is reason to believe that over the last couple of decades the quality of K-12 teachers has declined, a phenomenon that should alarm every parent in America. If our teachers are not properly prepared for their jobs why should we expect our children to be?

Recently the American Federation ofTeachers has proposed that all aspiring teachers take an entrance exam similar to the bar exam lawyers must take.

A nationwide test that examined not only the teacher’s knowledge on certain subjects but also their level of caring, competence and confidence would go a long way in separating the good teachers from the not so good teachers. Holding our teachers to a high standardized level of education, experience and emotional stability is necessary to ensure the future of our nation.

As it is now each state has a different set of criteria a person must meet before they are allowed to teach. Every state requires at least a bachelor’s degree and varying amounts of time spent in the classroom. The AFT has in the works a plan to get rid of all those different tests and evaluations and to replace them with one standardized teaching bar exam/requirements.

Is this a good idea? In many ways it is. President of the AFT, Randi Weingarten, has outlined three basic provisions of such a program. First, all parties would have to agree on the standards. This part may be difficult to coordinate as there are several current standards they must sift through and determine which are useful and which are a waste of time.

Secondly, all teachers would take the same assessments. Currently some teachers attain certification through traditional means by completing an accredited teacher education program. Others earn their certification through alternative means, usually a potpourri of course and fieldwork.  

The last provision of the exam is that the teachers and teacher educators would govern it. This is the most important change in the system that the exam provides. Weingarten argues that for too long too much of the education business has been controlled by testing companies instead of what the profession thinks is important. Medicine, law and engineering are all regulated by the profession so why not teaching?

The understanding is no one knows better than a teacher what makes a good teacher. Opponents to this exam claim that tests are not sure fire ways to determine the effectiveness of a teacher and this is true.

However, these critics are not taking into account that teachers will create this proposed exam for other teachers. When constructing the exam, and the its supporting requirements, they will know what specific traits to look for and what environments to train the future teachers in to make them as effective as possible.  

There is fear that creating too many hoops for hopefuls to jump through (especially considering the low financially return) will deter potential teachers. Yes, some college students will look at the list of requirements and opt for a career in business or medicine instead. I myself have given great thought to whether or not I’d like to make coupon clipping a serious part of my future.

As inconvenient as they may be, these hoops are necessary. Weingarten points out that the countries that out compete the U.S prepare their teachers like the U.S prepares its doctors. There should be no disgruntlement at the thought of making sure our teachers are as prepared as our doctors. Of course it would help if teachers were paid like doctors but that is another discussion.

A dangerous rebuttal to the above argument is that the U.S is doing just fine in the global market. It has the highest GDP so why is everyone worrying about education, teachers, and test scores?

Well it takes time for the effects of such neglect to become noticeable. There will come a time when the generation of children who did not learn to think critically, explore the sciences or see themselves as global citizens will emerge into the workforce. It will become difficult for the U.S to continue to compete with countries whose workforce is filled with sharp and skilled young people.

We need good teachers. Instead of punishing teachers who don’t perform well creating a universal system that gives teachers all the tools they need to help their students succeed is the right way to go. This proposed bar exam is a good starting point. There should be a high standard. We cannot afford anything else. 

7 comments:

  1. I like your proposal for a standardized set of requirements to become a teacher. Although it may be cumbersome to begin with, it provides a more effective way to ensure that teachers are properly trained before they enter a classroom.

    I also believe that constant feedback is a necessity to develop great teachers. I'm sure teachers receive evaluations from their superiors at the end of each year, but I think it could be useful to also ask students to fill out a survey, similar to the course evaluation system at USC. Although younger students might provide skewed perspectives based on their liking of the teacher as a person, I still think teachers could get some valuable data on what are their strengths and weaknesses from the children themselves. The more teachers know about how children respond to their lesson plans, the better they can tailor their curriculum and teach the concepts. Perhaps some elementary, middle, and high schools do this already, but I never experienced it in my day. As you mention, punishment is not the main goal. I don't see these evaluations as a negative teachers should worry about unless they are constantly receiving poor evaluations from the majority of students. Instead, they should view it as a tool to help them improve.

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  2. On one hand I can see how beneficial this sort of test would be to the quality of teachers that enter the workforce. I would add that teachers should also be required to retake the test say, every ten years or so in order to keep teachers from becoming complacent. In my experience, many older teachers at my public high school who had become tenured had subsequently become worse educators. The ones who don’t fear for their job are the ones that became the worst teachers. In 2009 while I was in high school, my favorite teacher was laid off because of the budget cuts to our district, while the worst old hag who “taught” geometry stayed. The young history teacher who everybody loved because he engaged and challenged his students was being laid off because he hadn’t been around as long, while the woman who handed students a book on their way in and refused to answer questions was one of the teachers who remained.
    On the other hand, who wants to jump through all these hoops for a meager teacher’s salary?! It’s sad but true that teachers in the U.S. are grossly underpaid, and adding yet another step in the process to become employed would just turn away even more prospective educators. The real problem is the discrepancy in compensation for the people responsible for our future, but like you said – that’s another discussion.

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  3. I personally believe teachers are one of the heroic professionals of our society. Most people wouldn't be where they are today without a teacher at some point in their lives. Think of the doctors, the lawyers, the engineers, etc,. We owe it to our teachers; we ought to be grateful for their contributions to a better a society. Having said that, I do agree with the American Federation of Teacher proposal of a bar examination for teachers. In a competitive society, every kid deserves the best teachers they can get. Unfortunately, there have been far too many of our teachers with less commitment in our schools. Those need to go. The best and committed teachers need to come in. We need them for a more better society. Yes, set the bar!

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  4. Well thought out argument. I think that a much better effort needs to be made in society to pay attention to the issues surrounding the education our children receive.

    Teacher training and accreditation is indeed part of the solution, however more focus needs to be placed upon the system we currently have in place. It has not changed much over the 200 years of the nation's history. There is evidence to suggest that children learn at different capacities and to place them all in a classroom of 20-30 kids and have one person preach to them may not be conducive to the best education.

    Perhaps smaller groups of 3-4 students should be assigned tasks in classrooms with the teacher facilitating the groupwork. Who knows? It's just an idea, but perhaps it would place greater responsibility and sense of ownership in each student's education and better prepare them for a life of team work.

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  5. I think this is such a great idea! I also believe that teaching needs to become a much more respected position. Making credentials and an added exam would really add some prestige to this position. Its unfortunate to see people who want to teach take the law school or med school route because they seek more money and society's approval. I've often wondered if standardizing and mandating a masters degree for certain teaching jobs could aid with this problem as well. I would be really interested to know how much input the powerful teachers unions would have in the drafting of these tests.

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  6. Good post, great idea. Teachers are the ones who shape the minds of the next generation and we need instructors who are more than just adequate if we want our future doctors, lawyers, and engineers to be more than just adequate. Many also look down upon the profession of teaching and perhaps with an entrance exam and higher standards, it will be more highly regarded. Teachers have a very important job and deserve more respect.

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  7. Very well thought out and executed argument; your proposal is also very insightful. I'm always stunned at how few students today are looking to become teachers. Teaching is such a valuable and rewarding profession that I find it hard to believe that so few students who wish to enter the field. Obviously, the low pay is a deterrent, but I still think that it should be seen as a more valuable profession. There definitely need to be more incentives in place for students to go into the teaching field because they are absolutely invaluable in shaping the future of our nation.

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